20 Greatest Summer Blockbusters Ever Made

15. The Matrix (1999)

RottenTomatoes Score: 87% (7.6/10)

Box Office: $463.5 million

Why It's Awesome: Now, this one's a bit of a cheat considering that The Matrix was originally released on March 31st, 1999, but with the start of "summer" blockbuster season being progressively pushed back to April (The Fast and the Furious movies) and now even March (Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice), it seems somewhat acceptable.

Few directors could take heady philosophical concepts and inject them into an action film while destroying the box office and creating a pop-culture phenomenon, but that's exactly what the Wachowskis did. The Matrix broke new ground with its provocative ideas about reality and existence, while the jaw-dropping action sequences created a popular Hollywood aesthetic that still persists today.

Keanu Reeves gives one of his better performances here as the empty shell who slowly gains a soul, Neo, while Hugo Weaving, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss and Joe Pantoliano are all excellent in their respective, iconic roles.

It goes without saying that the film's influence has been felt in countless action films over the years, and it's destined to endure over the decades as a benchmark for effects-soaked action filmmaking. It's also aged insanely well.